Which new skills will you acquire in 2018?
Great lawyers and strategists know that when it comes to high performance in a particular transaction, dispute, client meeting, interview or even an internship, specific subject matter expertise is important.
You can’t afford to spend time acquiring new skills after you have been briefed by a client, or, if you are an in-house adviser, after a situation has already arisen. In fact, corporate and work is largely based on advance planning and strategy. Contracts and financing decisions predict and minimise all chances of doubt or confusion when a deal is entered into. Similarly, dispute resolution strategies do not anymore involve use of adjudicative mechanisms in a knee-jerk manner.
At the end of January, we have decided to conduct 3 unique lectures and workshops on highly specialised subjects.
Workshop on Technology Transfer Agreements – Drafting and Negotiation, by Bhumesh Verma, Founder of Corp Comm Legal, Author of Contract Drafting Textbooks and Former Partner at Khaitan and Link Legal (details below)
Date: 24th January, 2018 (6 – 9 pm), Fees: INR 2,000 (enrol here)
Lecture on Negotiation in Dispute Situations for Law Students and Lawyers, by Arjun Natarajan, litigator and certified mediator (IIAM and IICA, under the aegis of Ministry of Corporate Affairs – Government of India), retainer counsel for TRAI, Founder and Publishing Editor of Indian Mediation Law Blog (www.indianmediationlaw.wordpress.com).
Date: 30th January, 2018 (6 – 9 pm), Fees: INR 1500 (enrol here)
Workshop on Debt Finance: Private Placement, Listing and Loan Agreements, by Neha Mary Koshy, Former Associate with Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas, Trilegal and HSB Partners (details below)
Date: 31st January, 2018 (6 – 9 pm), Fees: INR 1,700 (enrol here)
Venue for all the three workshops:
iPleaders Office (New Delhi),
33A, Mehrauli Badarpur Road,
Saidulajab, (Around 100m walk from Saket Metro Station (Saidulajab Exit) on the main road)
New Delhi – 110030.
Landmarks: Next to Lingaya’s Building / Red Onion Restaurant Near Saket
Seats: 30 (Registration is on first-come, first-served basis)
In case you have any questions, feel free to call us on 011-33138901 or write to [email protected]
Detailed syllabus and outcomes of each workshop
Workshop on Technology Transfer Agreements – Drafting and Negotiation
- Ownership of IP by transferor
- Due diligence for Technology Transfers
- Methods of transfer
- Ownership of new rights and alternative methods of structuring and negotiation
- Termination and how that works
- Regulatory limitations on payment of royalty
- Technology transfer from India to offshore companies
- In which country should Indian inventors house technological innovations?
- How should you use this knowledge in interviews?
Prior knowledge of contract law or contract drafting is not necessary as we will be using an intuitive approach which anyone can grasp.
All participants who attend the workshop will receive a checklist for negotiating an agreement effectively and a template of a real-life agreement which can be customized based on the situation.
Participants will also receive a certificate of participation.
Interview Tip: In case you are attending the workshop for being interview ready, make sure you articulate what you learnt in the workshop and how that will help you specifically in the work you do for a recruiter in your interview. That is inspiring, compared to a cursory mention of the fact that you attended the workshop or pointing to your certificate or your CV.
Faculty: Bhumesh Verma, Founder of Corp Comm Legal, Former Partner at Khaitan & Co, Paras Kuhad & Associates and Link Legal India Law Services
Register here
- Lecture on Negotiation in Dispute Situations for Law Students and Lawyers
Why should you attend this lecture?
When it comes to appreciating situations from an adversarial perspective, law students and lawyers tend to do well, as they are trained to do so from the very beginning of their education in law.
In practice, it becomes very necessary to examine commercial disputes from a point of view, which is different from an adversarial point of view. Often, negotiation is the first step taken by parties to a commercial dispute. Opening up the minds of law students and lawyers to negotiation would make them well-rounded professionals, who can appreciate disputes from not just an adversarial perspective, but also show negotiation skills and have that all important component – the ability to communicate complex ideas to clients. In fact, it is quite difficult for lawyers to get by with clients, with only adversarial skills.
Parties to commercial disputes rely heavily on strategic inputs from such lawyers while negotiating to resolve disputes. Such lawyers are frequently engaged by a party to a commercial dispute, to manage expectations and protect its interests. They play key negotiating roles in such situations.
Whether you are a litigator or a corporate lawyer, if you are equipped with negotiation skills, potential clients are more likely to engage you to manage their expectations, protect their interests and to play key negotiating roles, especially in commercial disputes. The thought process of a lawyer equipped with negotiation skills has elements of commerce and strategy, in addition to law. Negotiation skills will enable you to think and strategize, keeping in mind your client’s commercial intent. That apart, as a lawyer, you can additionally guide your clients to look for consensual, amicable and innovative solutions, which have legal backing.
Negotiation skills add a new element to your professional expertise.
Furthermore, negotiation skills lie at the heart of conciliation and mediation. Hence, mastering negotiation skills definitely makes law students and lawyers better users of conciliation and mediation. In the sense that, such an equipped lawyer could effectively represent his clients before a conciliator or a mediator.
As a lawyer with good negotiation skills, your communication with your clients and with lawyers’ of your clients’ opponents is likely to be far more effective and persuasive.
Most importantly, in an era when the premium for legal tasks is falling because of artificial intelligence; negotiation skills could give you an edge.
What will you learn during this lecture?
The recent past has witnessed an unprecedented rise in discussions on negotiation. Undoubtedly, this has immensely contributed to the body of knowledge pertaining to the skills which are essential to negotiate. It has also created more awareness about negotiation and the advantages of negotiation.
As much as several principles of negotiation with foreign origin are largely of universal applicability, it is important to tweak the principles and make them suitable in the Indian context. During the course of this lecture, keeping in mind the Indian context, broadly speaking, the endeavour shall be to enable you to learn the following:
- How to use negotiation as a process and mechanism to satisfy different needs and interests of parties
- How to use negotiation to arrive at positions that really reflect a satisfaction of needs and interests of the parties
- How should you prepare for a negotiation (keeping in mind the Indian context)?
- Negotiation tips based on Arthashastra by Chanakya that are still relevant and used in the modern day
- Legal and professional ethics in context of negotiation for lawyers, as per Indian law
- Drafting settlement agreements and enforceability of settlement agreements.
Faculty
Arjun Natarajan
Arjun is a litigator as well as an accredited and certified mediator (IIAM and IICA under the aegis of Ministry of Corporate Affairs – Government of India). He is the retainer counsel for Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. He is the Founder and Publishing Editor of INDIAN MEDIATION LAW BLOG
(www.indianmediationlaw.wordpress.com).
Register here
- Debt Finance: Private Placement, Listing and Loan Agreements
From a businessman’s perspective, the cost of debt is cheaper than equity (if he is certain of his cash flows and places a premium on control).
If you work in a company (in finance or legal & compliance or strategic roles), this kind of knowledge will be crucial. Many businessmen are looking to raise loans and struggle with the options available and how to negotiate their contracts.
Knowing how companies raise debt through different mechanisms is crucial if you work in a corporate law firm in banking and finance, capital markets or general corporate teams or if you aspire to work in them.
Even as a litigator, this expertise can be a useful source of revenue and clients. In fact, occasional advisory work can lead to a successful entry point into the world of dispute resolution for your clients. If you are involved with the client when the deal is being entered into, you are likely to be involved if there is a dispute (assuming that the client is satisfied with your services).
Syllabus
Loans vs. Debentures – How are they different?
How to decode a loan agreement and key clauses
Why and how should you raise ECBs?
How to understand and prepare a debt information memorandum as per SEBI regulations
Private placement compliance requirements under Companies Act
Due Diligence in debt financing transactions and material risks
Secured loans vs. unsecured loans – what is the difference?
What is the legal work involved for secured loans?
Options in the case of default
Participants who attend the workshop will receive sample templates for future reference and analysis and a certificate of participation.
Interview Tip: In case you are attending the workshop for being interview ready, make sure you articulate what you learnt in the workshop and how that will help you specifically in the work you do for a recruiter or a client in your interview. That is inspiring, compared to a cursory mention of the fact that you attended the workshop or pointing to your certificate or your CV.
Faculty: Neha Mary Koshy
Corporate Lawyer (Neha has earlier worked as an associate with Bharucha & Partners, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas and Trilegal)
Register here
